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My name is Jolita Vaitkute and I'm an artist and lecturer who implements ideas by making installations, illustrations and performances.

“Untranslatable Words” is a project illustrating words of several languages which are impossible to translate.

More info: Facebook | vaitkute.com

#1

Gökotta (swedish): To Wake Up Early In The Morning With The Purpose Of Going Outside To Hear The First Birds Sing

Gökotta (swedish): To Wake Up Early In The Morning With The Purpose Of Going Outside To Hear The First Birds Sing

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#2

Sobremesa Is The Spanish Word That Refers To The Time Spent After Lunch Or Dinner Socializing With The People You Shared The Meal With

Sobremesa Is The Spanish Word That Refers To The Time Spent After Lunch Or Dinner Socializing With The People You Shared The Meal With

Meals are a very important part of the Spanish culture, and the Spanish people value the time spent relaxing and chatting after finishing eating. The Catalan equivalent is sobretaula.

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Shruti Naik
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7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If the spread looks so delicious I can sobremesa all the time.

#3

Verschlimmbessern (german): To Accidentally Make Something Worse In The Process Of Attempting To Mend Or Improve It

Verschlimmbessern (german): To Accidentally Make Something Worse In The Process Of Attempting To Mend Or Improve It

Multiple applications around computers, cake baking and relationships.

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Hannah Hollowell
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7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If I could actually pronounce the word, I just know I'd be using it all the time o_O

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#4

Gattara – The Italian Untranslatable Word Describes A Woman, Often Old And Lonely, Who Devotes Herself To Stray Cats

Gattara – The Italian Untranslatable Word Describes A Woman, Often Old And Lonely, Who Devotes Herself To Stray Cats

The Simpsons have this character too, known as the Crazy Cat Lady.

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#5

Litost (czech) — Milan Kundera, Said About It “as For The Meaning Of This Word, I Have Looked In Vain In Other Languages For An Equivalent, Though I Find It Difficult To Imagine How Anyone Can Understand The Human Soul Without It”

Litost (czech) — Milan Kundera, Said About It “as For The Meaning Of This Word, I Have Looked In Vain In Other Languages For An Equivalent, Though I Find It Difficult To Imagine How Anyone Can Understand The Human Soul Without It”

The closest definition is a state of agony and torment created by the sudden sight of one’s own misery.

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#6

Házisárkány – The Hungarian Untranslatable Word Would Be Literally Translated As “Home-Dragon”

Házisárkány – The Hungarian Untranslatable Word Would Be Literally Translated As “Home-Dragon”

This derogatory term actually designates an impatient or ill-natured spouse.

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Susan Forbes
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7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My grandmother called it street angel, house devil (family originally from Ireland)

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#7

Pålegg (norwegian): Anything And Everything You Can Put On A Slice Of Bread

Pålegg (norwegian): Anything And Everything You Can Put On A Slice Of Bread

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Enea
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7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wouldn't that be bread spread? In German you have Belag, which sounds suspiciously sinular to pålegg.

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